Generally, imaging devices such as scanners or copiers are increasingly being employed in a variety of electronic devices. For example, multi-function devices (MFDs) such as multi-function printers (MFPs) may incorporate mechanisms for printing, copying, scanning, and/or faxing and may additionally include capabilities to scan or copy directly to email, memory cards, or other forms of storage.
Traditional architecture of current imaging devices typically includes separate assemblies for different functional elements. For example, a preponderance of scanning device configurations have separate discrete assemblies for each of an optical scanning assembly, an analog front end circuit for digitizing analog signals, and data transformation functionality to compensate for numerous individual variances in lighting, sensor, and/or optics of the imaging device. A preponderance of scanning device configurations may also have discrete assemblies for each of a set of transforms associated with a copy pipe and a print pipe.
Such configurations may require extensive cabling to interconnect the separate assemblies, which may increase the cost for cabling and shielding in order to contain radiated emissions from signals transferred over the cabling. For example, cabling may transfer analog signals over longer distances from an image sensor to an analog front end circuit for digitization, increasing the possibility of undesirable radiation emissions that may compromise image quality of an image captured by the image sensor. Configurations having separate assemblies may further increase development and materials costs because higher cost custom chips may be created for each of the separate assemblies.
Signals from a sensor module of a conventionally arranged imaging device may also have a higher data rate because data transforms that reduce a data rate may not be performed until the signals are processed in a separate assembly that is not integrated in the sensor module. Improvements to these and other cost and quality issues of existing imaging architectures would be desirable.